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FILE - In an Oct. 12, 1933 file photo, about 1,000 people gather around the statue of Christopher Columbus high atop a six-story column in New York's Columbus Circle, to pay tribute to the great navigator on the 441st anniversary of his discovery of America. Japanese artist Tatzu Nishi has encased the 70-foot-tall column in scaffolding and is in the process of erecting a living room - complete with couch, coffee table and lamps - around the figure of Columbus. Some Italian-Americans say the art project makes a mockery of the great explorer and trivializes history. (AP Photo, File)
/ AP